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EPA decision to regulate greenhouse gases sparks action

by Kitty Felde

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Earth Day in Washington got an extra jolt of energy when the EPA last week decided it has the power to regulate “greenhouse gasses.” KPCC’s Washington Correspondent Kitty Felde reports the EPA decision is sparking action on Capitol Hill.

Earth Day in Washington got an extra jolt of energy when the EPA last week decided it has the power to regulate “greenhouse gasses.” KPCC’s Washington Correspondent Kitty Felde reports the EPA decision is sparking action on Capitol Hill.

Kitty Felde: For Earth Day, Senator Barbara Boxer’s Environment and Public Works Committee discussed how to make federal buildings more energy efficient. But the real action was over on the House side with the Energy and Commerce Committee.

L.A. Democrat Henry Waxman is the chairman. He’s holding a week of hearings on a sweeping bill on climate change. Last Friday, the Environmental Protection Agency issued a declaration that “greenhouse gases” are harmful.

The finding lets the EPA regulate carbon emissions – and gives it significant authority over climate change policy. Congressman Waxman says that’s not the right way to control “greenhouse gases.”

Congressman Henry Waxman: I think that most people recognize that it’s preferable to have Congress deal with this issue than to have the Clean Air Act and the Environmental Protection Agency have to regulate it under that Clean Air Act.

Felde: The energy and the transportation secretaries testified that the House bill would reduce American dependence on foreign oil – and create green jobs. On Friday, Waxman’s committee hears from former vice president Al Gore – the Nobel Prize and Oscar-winning climate activist.